Disposable Toothbrush Having an Internal Toothpaste Cartridge

ABSTRACT

A disposable toothbrush having a handle connected to a extendable support arm that is connected to a brush head. The brush head has bristles attached thereto and a delivery port formed within the brush head between an underside of the brush head and a top of the brush head adjacent a cavity holding the toothpaste gel. This toothpaste gel sitting atop a concavity on top of the brush head. A thin deformable plastic cap is attached to the brush head such that it surrounds the toothpaste gel. Further, the handle is hollow and permits the insertion of the support arm therein.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/621,864 filed on Apr. 09, 2012.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

N/A

COPYRIGHT NOTICE

A portion of the disclosure of this patent document contains material that is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner has no objection to the facsimile reproduction by anyone of the patent document or patent disclosure as it appears in the United States Patent and Trademark Office patent file or records, but otherwise reserves all copyrights whatsoever.

BACKGROUND

(1) Field of the invention

Relating to improvements in devices used for oral hygiene.

Men and women have always sought to keep themselves clean in order to appear fresh and presentable to themselves and to their neighbors. They primarily do this by maintaining proper hygiene using a simple routine of daily showering using soap and shampoo as well as proper cleaning of the mouth through the use of a toothbrush. There are many forms of brushes available on the market today that are typically made to support the needs of different users; amongst these are electric brushes, brushes designed with bristles having varying surface patterns, ergonomic brushes supporting different hand postures and brushes with angled brush head.

Amongst the electric type there are electric toothbrushes including those that are battery powered as well as those that are powered by a conventional wall outlet. However, a problem arises in that the brushes described previously are of no help whatsoever in the event that you can not get a tube of toothpaste. Perhaps the store has run out of a user's favorite brand of toothpaste or there simply is no brand available locally so that a user must turn to another alternative to keep his or her mouth fresh and clean. Additionally, perhaps a user does not want to purchase a new one since he or she already has a costly expensive electric one at home. Thus, there needs to be some solution that overcome the aforementioned deficiencies found above in the prior art.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A disposable toothbrush having a support arm that is connected to a brush head having bristles attached thereto and a toothpaste gel sitting atop a concavity on top of the brush head. There is a thin deformable plastic cap attached to the brush head wherein a thin deformable cap attached to the brush head covers the toothpaste gel so that it is sealed from an external environment. A delivery port formed within the brush head between an underside of the brush head and a top of the brush head adjacent a cavity holding the toothpaste gel. A plurality of delivery ports are formed within the brush head between an underside of the brush head and a top of the brush head adjacent a cavity holding the toothpaste gel. Three delivery ports are formed within the brush head between an underside of the brush head and a top of the brush head adjacent a cavity holding the toothpaste gel. The handle is of the toothbrush is hollow having a support arm that is extendable into the handle.

A disposable toothbrush having a hollow handle connected to a support arm that is connected to a brush head having bristles attached thereto such that the support arm is extendable into the handle. There is a toothpaste gel sitting atop a concavity on top of the brush head. A thin deformable plastic cap is attached to the brush head such that it covers the toothpaste gel so that it is sealed from an external environment. There is a delivery port formed within the brush head between an underside of the brush head and a top of the brush head adjacent a concavity holding the toothpaste gel. There are a plurality of delivery ports formed within the brush head between an underside of the brush head and a top of the brush head adjacent a concavity holding the toothpaste gel. There are three delivery ports formed within the brush head between an underside of the brush head and a top of the brush head adjacent a concavity holding the toothpaste gel.

A disposable toothbrush having a handle connected to a support arm that is connected to a brush head having bristles attached thereto and a delivery port formed within the brush head between an underside of the brush head and a top of the brush head adjacent a cavity holding the toothpaste gel. a toothpaste gel sitting atop a concavity on top of the brush head. Also, there is a thin deformable plastic cap attached to the brush head such that it surrounds the toothpaste gel. Further, the handle is hollow and permits the insertion of the support arm therein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 a illustrates a back elevation view of an embodiment of the Disposable Toothbrush Having an Internal Toothpaste Cartridge; FIG. 1 b illustrates a front elevation view of an embodiment of the Disposable Toothbrush Having an Internal Toothpaste Cartridge.

FIG. 2 a illustrates a side cross-section view of an embodiment of the Disposable Toothbrush Having an Internal Toothpaste Cartridge featuring a fully extended handle and arm configuration; FIG. 2 b illustrates a side cross-section view of an embodiment of the Disposable Toothbrush Having an Internal Toothpaste Cartridge featuring a extendable handle and arm configuration.

FIG. 3 a illustrates an exploded front view of an embodiment of the bristles portion of the toothbrush having delivery ports for expulsion of the toothpaste material; FIG. 3 b illustrates an exploded side view cross section of an embodiment of the bristles portion and the thin deformable plastic cap-paste portion of the toothbrush having delivery ports for expulsion of the toothpaste material with the thin deformable plastic cap not connected to the brush head; FIG. 3 c illustrates an assembled side view cross section of an embodiment of the bristles portion, the thin deformable plastic cap-paste portion of the toothbrush having cavities for expulsion of the toothpaste material with the thin deformable plastic cap connected to the back of the brush head.

FIG. 4 a illustrates a side view of a hollow handle of an embodiment. FIG. 4 b illustrates a side section view of a thin deformable plastic cap of an embodiment. FIG. 4 c illustrates a section side view of a toothpaste portion of an embodiment. FIG. 4 d illustrates a support arm 105 and associated brush bristle head. FIG. 4 e illustrates a section side view section of the support arm, associated brush bristle head, thin deformable plastic cap and gel in an embodiment where the support arm is in its initial position. FIG. 4 f illustrates a section side view of the support arm, associated brush bristle head, thin deformable plastic cap and gel in an embodiment where the support arm is fully extended.

FIG. 5 a illustrates a working side view of a user opening the toothbrush of an embodiment. FIG. 5 b-5 c illustrates a working side view of how a user compresses the toothpaste so as to make the substance flow through the delivery ports in the head of the brush.

FIG. 6 a illustrates an initial position of the arm support arm side view and FIG. 6 b illustrates the packaging used by the device.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 a illustrates a back elevation view of an embodiment of the Disposable Toothbrush device Having an Internal Toothpaste Cartridge. The toothbrush of FIG. 1 a has three main components, namely, a head having a thin deformable plastic cap 115, a support arm 105 and a handle 100. The device of FIG. 1 a is made from plastics for the arm and handle, nylon for the bristles in the head. Rubber is also useable for ergonomic improvement of the handle and heated glue is used to bind the components together. FIG. 1 b illustrates a front elevation view of an embodiment of the Disposable Toothbrush Having an Internal Toothpaste Cartridge. This view again shows the extendible support arm 105 and the ergonomic handle 100. Additionally, it shows the toothbrush head having three delivery ports 310 found amongst the head's bristles for the expulsion of toothpaste from the thin deformable plastic cap on the other side of the head.

FIG. 2 a illustrates a side cross-section view of an embodiment of the Disposable Toothbrush Having an Internal Toothpaste Cartridge featuring a fully extended handle and arm configuration. A plastic support arm 105 is integrated with the head and has bristles inserted therein and a thin deformable plastic cap 115 is attached to the back side of the head as discussed below. Further, a toothpaste gel 110 is placed within the thin deformable plastic cap with a dispensing device so as to prepare the thin deformable plastic cap for compression and release of the gel 110 into the delivery ports 310 shown in another figure. A rectangular oblong solid support arm 105 has an integral portion of the same formed as an plastic oblong rectangular solid 215 of greater dimensions in width and thickness than the support arm 105.

Additionally, this integral portion 215 has a rectangular locking protrusion 225 that extends outwards from the front face of the integral portion at the bottom of the integral portion 215. This locking protrusion 225 slides under a corresponding first auxiliary locking protrusion 220 that extends outwards from the inner wall of the ergonomic handle 100. The first auxiliary locking protrusion 220 holds the support arm 105 in place by sitting atop a ledge formed by the extended locking protrusion 225 as it flows back into the front surface of the integral portion 215 of the support arm 105. A second auxiliary locking protrusion 230 extends at an angle from the inner surface of the ergonomic handle 100 such that it is wedged underneath the lip of the locking protrusion 225.

Finally, the ergonomic handle 100 has a hollow or cavity 235 running down the inside longitudinally so as to permit the extension of support arm 105 along with the integral portion 215. The device is forbidden from going further by the bottom of the integral portion 215 impacting the inner walls of the hollow cavity 235 as it slopes inwards reducing the dimensions of the cavity; alternatively, the neck of the handle impacting the underside of the tooth brush head. Further, the device is forbidden from extending further by the locking protrusion 225 snapping into a space that hollows out above the second auxiliary locking protrusion 230 and beneath the first auxiliary locking protrusion 220. FIG. 2 b illustrates a side cross-section view of an embodiment of the Disposable Toothbrush Having an Internal Toothpaste Cartridge featuring a extendable handle and arm configuration as discussed above. Finally, there is a transition from round shaft to square shaft shown in 210.

FIG. 3 a illustrates an exploded front view of an embodiment of the brush head 325 including the bristles portion of the toothbrush having delivery ports 310 for expulsion of the toothpaste material; these delivery ports are shown more clearly with regards to FIGS. 3 b-3 c. FIG. 3 b illustrates an exploded side view cross section of an embodiment of the bristles portion and the thin deformable plastic cap-paste portion of the toothbrush having delivery ports for expulsion of the toothpaste material with the thin deformable plastic cap not connected to the brush head. A thin deformable plastic cap 110 is to be pressed into the head of the toothbrush having a concavity shown in FIG. 3 a that allows for more paste; this thin deformable plastic cap 110 covers the toothpaste gel 315. FIG. 3 c illustrates an assembled side view cross section of an embodiment of the bristles portion, the thin deformable plastic cap-paste portion of the toothbrush having delivery ports for expulsion of the toothpaste material with the thin deformable plastic cap connected to the back of the brush head.

The thin deformable plastic cap 110 is connected to the head 325 of the toothbrush through a downwards lip 320 running along the perimeter of the brush head at its bottom edge; this thin deformable plastic cap is connected to the back of the brush head through the use of an adhesive or by being heat treated with a heating element during manufacturing; this fuses the head and thin deformable plastic cap together thereby making a completed device. When a user wishes to expel toothpaste gel through delivery ports 310 all he or she has to do is press down on the back of the thin deformable plastic cap 110 compressing it until the gel is expelled through delivery ports 310 into the bristles. These three circular delivery ports 310 perforate the head 325 of the toothbrush from one side until the other side of the head 325.

FIG. 4 a illustrates a side view of a hollow handle 100 of an embodiment. FIG. 4 b illustrates a side section view of a thin deformable plastic cap 110 of an embodiment. FIG. 4 c illustrates a section side view of a toothpaste portion 315 of an embodiment. FIG. 4 d illustrates a support arm 105 and associated brush bristle head. FIG. 4 e illustrates a section side view section of a completed device having the support arm 105, associated brush bristle head 325, thin deformable plastic cap and gel in an embodiment where the support arm is inserted as far as possible 400 into the handle. FIG. 4 f illustrates a section side view of a completed device having the support arm 105 associated brush bristle head 325, thin deformable plastic cap and gel in an embodiment where the support arm is fully extended.

FIG. 5 a illustrates a working side view of a user opening the toothbrush of an embodiment. A user grasps ahold of the handle with one hand and with the head with another hand. Using both hand the user pulls 500 the head and support arm from its initial position until it opens completely. Then as shown in FIG. 5 b-5 c, the user compresses 505 the toothpaste 315 so as to make the substance flow through the delivery ports in the head of the brush down into the bristles 510 of the brush head so as to be made useable for brushing the teeth of the user.

FIG. 6 a illustrates an initial position for a support arm in a side view for a Disposable Toothbrush Having an Internal Toothpaste Cartridge 600 and FIG. 6 b illustrates the packaging 605 used by the device.

The invention has thus been described in such clear and precise terms as to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to understand its fundamental principles. 

I claim:
 1. A disposable toothbrush comprising: a handle connected to a support arm that is connected to a brush head having bristles attached thereto and a toothpaste gel sitting atop a concavity on top of the brush head.
 2. The disposable toothbrush of claim 1 further comprising: a thin deformable plastic cap attached to the brush head.
 3. The disposable toothbrush of claim 2 wherein the thin deformable plastic cap attached to the brush head covers the toothpaste gel so that it is sealed from an external environment.
 4. The disposable toothbrush of claim 1 further comprising: a delivery port formed within the brush head between an underside of the brush head and a top of the brush head adjacent a cavity holding the toothpaste gel.
 5. The disposable toothbrush of claim 1 further comprising: a plurality of delivery ports are formed within the brush head between an underside of the brush head and a top of the brush head adjacent a cavity holding the toothpaste gel.
 6. The disposable toothbrush of claim 1 further comprising: three delivery ports are formed within the brush head between an underside of the brush head and a top of the brush head adjacent a cavity holding the toothpaste gel.
 7. The disposable toothbrush of claim 1 wherein the handle is hollow.
 8. The disposable toothbrush of claim 7 wherein the support arm is extendable from the handle.
 9. A disposable toothbrush comprising: a hollow handle connected to a support arm that is connected to a brush head having bristles attached thereto.
 10. The disposable toothbrush of claim 9 wherein the support arm is extendable from the handle.
 11. The disposable toothbrush of claim 9 further comprising: a toothpaste gel sitting atop a concavity on top of the brush head.
 12. The disposable toothbrush of claim 11 further comprising: a thin deformable plastic cap attached to the brush head.
 13. The disposable toothbrush of claim 12 wherein the thin deformable plastic cap attached to the brush head covers the toothpaste gel so that it is sealed from an external environment.
 14. The disposable toothbrush of claim 9 further comprising: a delivery port formed within the brush head between an underside of the brush head and a top of the brush head adjacent a concavity holding the toothpaste gel.
 15. The disposable toothbrush of claim 9 further comprising: a plurality of delivery ports are formed within the brush head between an underside of the brush head and a top of the brush head adjacent a concavity holding the toothpaste gel.
 16. The disposable toothbrush of claim 9 further comprising: three delivery ports are formed within the brush head between an underside of the brush head and a top of the brush head adjacent a concavity holding the toothpaste gel.
 17. A disposable toothbrush comprising: a handle connected to a support arm that is connected to a brush head having bristles attached thereto and a delivery port formed within the brush head between an underside of the brush head and a top of the brush head adjacent a cavity holding the toothpaste gel.
 18. The disposable toothbrush of claim 17, further comprising: a toothpaste gel sitting atop a concavity on top of the brush head.
 19. The disposable toothbrush of claim 18, further comprising: a thin deformable plastic cap attached to the brush head such that it surrounds the toothpaste gel.
 20. The disposable toothbrush of claim 19, wherein the handle is hollow and permits the insertion of the support arm therein. 